The Student Achievement – Teacher Professional Learning Connection There’s a domino game getting set up in schools today: Through the years, the research points to high-quality teachers as the most influential aspect of student achievement. If schools continue to lose high-quality teachers, hire less-than-qualified teachers, and fail to retain them, what hope is there for […]
Teachers and AI and ELLs, Oh My!
Having experienced the pathways and trends in education since the 1950s, I can confidently proclaim . . . this is a time like no other. We are at a crossroads that is both daunting and exhilarating. COVID, AI, and globalization, to name a few, are changing the landscape of students, parents, and teachers. Schools must […]
The Six Phases of PBL Design & Implementation
If you’re looking to: you need to think of one word, the key to it all: engagement! Think about any child or adult you know, or yourself! When we are engaged in an activity that draws us in, we lose all track of time; we are glued to the activity; we question; we search; we […]
5 Strategies for Leveraging Neurodiversity in the Classroom
In the blockbuster The Imitation Game, Alan Turing is stigmatized as arrogant and apathetic. In a classroom, children labeled with these characteristics are less likely to be authentically engaged. Their education and career opportunities become limited as a result. However, when we shift our mindsets and frame those characteristics as self-aware and passionate (for Turing, […]
Unlocking the Potential of Content, Learners, & Teachers Through Questioning!
Unlocking potential through questioning is the first step in the quest for student “choice and voice.” Choice empowers students to make decisions about their own learning path; voice engages them in designing the learning environment. First, however, students need to become comfortable with expression — sharing their thoughts, ideas, learning, and questions. So I like […]